Treasury IG to Examine IRS Handling of O'Donnell's Tax Records

The inspector general who went after the IRS for targeting conservative groups for heightened scrutiny has agreed to investigate why the agency accessed the personal tax records of former Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell, according to Politico.

The Treasury Department Inspector General for Tax Administration has scheduled an interview with the Delaware Republican, Politico noted.

O'Donnell and Senate investigators led by Iowa GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley, have for months been trying to get to the bottom of how and why an IRS employee accessed her personal tax records on March 9, 2010, the day the tea party favorite announced her candidacy.

They also want answers as to why, on the same day, a tax lien was put on a house purported to be hers and publicized in the media, even though she no longer owned it. The agency later chalked it up to a "computer glitch."

O'Donnell and Grassley have said the case is worrying because it could signify that, in addition to targeting conservative groups, the IRS may have also been singling out individuals for scrutiny based on their political leanings.

"We're now talking about an individual candidate—not just the tax exempt and government entities unit, so it would be a broader concern if it turns out that there was something fishy going on," a Grassley aide told Politico.

In pursuit of answers, O'Donnell and Grassley had been repeatedly stonewalled by the IRS, which maintained it could not release any details to protect the identity of the employee involved. They were also told the case was closed, preventing O'Donnell from getting any information about her case. Freedom of Information Act requests have also been either delayed or denied.

The inspector general who went after the IRS for targeting conservative groups for heightened scrutiny has agreed to investigate why the agency accessed the personal tax records of former Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell.